WE ARE LEARNING MORE ABOUT A MAN WHO DROWNED YESTERDAY. POLICE CALLED IN THE DIVE TEAM WHICH PULLED THE MAN'S BODY OUT OF THE POND. THE FAMILY TELLS US HIS NAME. NEIGHBORS TELL US THEY'RE NERVOUS ABOUT THE POND BECAUSE IT'S NOT COMPLETELY FENCED IN AND CHILDREN PLAY NEARBY. HEATHER LEE IS JOINING US LIVE FROM THE NEIGHBORHOOD. SHE TALKED WITH A LAWYER ABOUT WHAT STEPS THE RESIDENTS CAN TAKE. WELL THE ST. JOHNS RIVER WATER MANAGEMENT SAYS IT SOLD THIS RETENTION POND TO THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION BACK IN 2005, BUT EVEN STILL, IT SAYS THAT THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION WOULD PROBABLY HAVE TROUBLES PUTTING A FENCE AROUND HERE BECAUSE IT WOULD MOST LIKELY HAVE TO GET PERMISSION FROM THE HOMEOWNERS ON THIS POND. BUT THE LAWYERS I SPOKE WITH SAYS THERE ARE TWO RESPONSIBILITIES THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION MUST FOLLOW TO KEEP PEOPLE SAFE. IT WAS A TRAGIC SCENE HERE AT DAYBREAK WOODS YESTERDAY. ACCORDING TO THE JACKSONVILLE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, A MAN WAS FOUND IN THIS RETENTION POND HOURS AFTER HE WENT UNDER WATER AND DIDN'T COME BACK UP. I SPOKE WITH HIS FAMILY TODAY WHO SAY THEY'RE GRIEVING AND WORKING OUT FUNERAL DETAILS. NEIGHBORS TOLD US YESTERDAY THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT THE POND BECAUSE OF HOW CLOSE IT IS TO THE HOUSES AND THE LACK OF FENCING AROUND IT. THE PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER SAYS THESE TYPE OF SITUATIONS HAPPEN MORE THAN YOU THINK BUT ADDRESSING THE ISSUE OF LIABILITY CAN BE COMPLICATED. THIS IS NOT A SIMPLE ANSWER BECAUSE IT'S HIGHLY VARIABLE ON THE FACTS. GENERALLY, THERE'S NOT A BLANKET RULE TO PROTECT EVERYBODY FROM WATER IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. THAT WOULD BE IMPRACTICAL AND COULDN'T BE DONE. THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION, MANAGEMENT COMPANY AND THE LANDOWNER HAVE TWO MAIN DUTIES. FIRST, TO MAINTAIN A SAFE CONDITION. SECOND, TO WARN EVERYONE OF ANY KNOWN DANGEROUS CONDITIONS THAT AREN'T OBVIOUS. A POND LIKE THIS ONE COULD BE SEEN AS AN OBVIOUS DANGER BUT IT SEEMS THE DEPTH OF THE WATER AND THE DRAINAGE PIPES MAY NOT BE SO OBVIOUS. HE SAYS THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION OR LANDOWNERS NEED TO TELL PEOPLE ABOUT IF THEY KNOW. HE SAYS IF THE CHILD WERE INVOLVED IN THE INCIDENT, THE SCENARIO COULD CHANGE, CLASSIFYING IT AS AN ATTRACTIVE NUISANCE WHICH MEANS THE LANDOWNER COULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE IF THE CHILD PRESS -- TRESPASSES. WE STILL DON'T KNOW HOW OR WHY THIS MAN DROWNED, BUT WE ARE WAITING ON MORE INFORMATION FROM THE JACKSONVILLE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -

It was a tragic scene Sunday in a Northside neighborhood, where a man drowned in a retention pond after going underwater and never resurfacing, according to police.

Officers searched for Giovanny Paredes in a pond in the Daybreak Woods neighborhood. Paredes' body was pulled out hours later.

It's still unclear how he drowned.

Residents said they're concerned about the pond because of how close it is to the houses and the lack of fencing around it.

Eric Ragatz, a family law and personal injury lawyer, said these types of situations happen often, but addressing the issue of liability can be complicated.

"I can tell you at this juncture there's not a simple answer because it's highly variable in the facts," Ragatz said. "Generally there's not a blanket rule to protect every body of water in the state of Florida. That would be impracticable and just couldn't be done."

Ragatz said the homeowners association, management company and landowner have two main duties: first is to maintain a safe condition, and second is to warn everyone of any known dangerous conditions that aren't obvious.

Ragatz said a pond like the one where Paredes drowned could obviously be a danger, but he said things like the depth of water or drainage pipes are not so obvious, and that is something the landowner or homeowners association must warn people about.

Ragatz said if a child were involved in the incident, the scenario could change, classifying it as an attractive nuisance, which essentially means the landowner could be held responsible if the child were to trespass on the land and get hurt.

The St. Johns River Water Management District said it sold the retention pond to the the homeowners association in 2005. Even still, it said the homeowners association would possibly have to get permission from each homeowner to build a fence.

The homeowners association that manages Daybreak Woods said the land underneath the water is owned by each individual homeowner, which means, it's up to each one of those property owners to put their own fence up.

But Ragatz said the homeowners association has responsibilities to keep people safe.

"If the homeowners or HOA or operators knew that kids were going in and it was a problem, they could have a duty to either put signs, warn parents or possibly fence it," Ragatz said.

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